As We Fall
by Lurexia
Summary: It's been 900 years since the famous l'Cie heroes slayed Orphan, saved Cocoon, and saved the people. Now, it's time for another generation of heroes to tell their own tale, of not just saving the world, but saving themselves.


**Woo, I'm finally back. ^^  
Now, I know I have some other fanfics that I need to attend to, but right now, I just want to focus on this fanfic, and try my best to finish it. (I may or may not get back to my other stories; just a little warning.)  
**

**So, this time, I'm writing for Final Fantasy XIII! I started replaying it about a week ago, and then this story idea popped into my head. So, I refined it, adding some stuff here and there, and now, here I am!  
**

**This story is about OCs, and will take place after the events of Final Fantasy XIII, but will NOT be related in to Final Fantasy XIII-2. (Except for the slight basing of one idea that will show itself later on.)  
**

**And so... Without further ado, here's chapter 1! Please enjoy (and please bear with me, because I may be rusty from not writing for so long)!  
**

* * *

**Chapter 1 -  
Revitalization**

The crystal statue hovered a few feet from the ground, shining a strong, almost blinding light. The crystal ribbons decorating the statue starting glowing, unraveling to dissolve as rays of light. The centerpiece of the statue itself now glowed, too, the crystal melting away like glass-like snow during the first rays of spring. The body that was encased in that crystal statue was now free, her clothes now returning to her body, and her body finally awakened. Still unconscious, she was placed gently on the ground, next to the body of yet another person that was a crystal statue just mere moments ago.

The girl then began to stir, sitting up slowly and stretching out her arms. She let out a yawn, and her eyes, after being closed for who knows how long, fluttered open, revealing orbs of sparking dark purple. The black-haired girl examined around her, taking in her current situation.

Where was she? She certainly didn't know this strange looking place. It was dark, metallic, and creepy in a way. It sent a strange chill down her spine, but she shook her head, trying to ignore it.

How did she get here? She tried thinking back, back to whatever time she came from. But nothing came. She knew she had done something significant to get here; she had this strong feeling that she couldn't ignore. But she just couldn't remember what she did, or any part of her past, at that. It was like that feeling, when you think you know something, and it's right on the tip of your tongue. But no matter how hard you try, you just can't get it. And just like that feeling, it bothered her to no end.

And finally... Who was this guy next to her? She had never seen his face before, but here he was, sleeping peacefully on the ground next to her, his right arm slung casually across his chest, and his dark red hair falling gently across his face. Or, she supposed, it was more of an auburn color than red.

Then, it hit her. It didn't "figuratively" hit her; it literally _hit_ her. A passing Pulsework Knight didn't seem to detect her, but it sure did bump into her, making her land directly (and painfully) on the unknown man's chest.

The man certainly woke up from that. The air suddenly knocked out of him, his body arched, his eyes flying wide open. He was about to clutch at his chest, but he found that he couldn't move his arm, because a body was on it. The _girl's_ body.

"What...?" he whispered in a raspy voice.

He coughed a few times before moving the girl aside, sitting up, and regaining his breath. He looked over to the girl, who finally came around, sitting up and groaning, holding her back.

"Ow, my back...," she groaned, arching her back in pain.

"Yeah? Well, _my _chest."

"Huh?" She looked over to the man and gasped. "Oh! Sorry! Th-that _thing_ bumped into me and I-"

He held his hand up, signaling her to stop. "It's alright. No blood, no foul, right?"

The girl didn't look satisfied with that, but she nodded anyway. As she looked down once again, the man took a look around, taking in his surroundings. "Hey, where are we?"

"I... I don't know," she replied. "I just woke up, like you, and-"

"Wait," he interrupted. "_Woke up_? W-Were you 'asleep', like me? And when I say 'asleep', I mean-"

"I was in a crystal sleep," she said. Then she faced him. "Just like you, right?"

"...Right. So, that means, you're a l'Cie, too, just like me?"

"Yup, just like you," she said, lifting her hand and patting her right shoulder blade.

He nodded and lifted his hand, as well, showing her the mark on the back of his left hand. "I see. My Brand is over here, on the back of my hand."

"It's... White," the girl said, tilting her head in curiosity.

"What..." The man turned his hand back to him, observing his Brand. And of course, there it was, his l'Cie Brand, now white, scorched, and halted. His eyes widened slightly as he took his other hand and gently stroked the white mark.

"Why is it white?" the girl asked.

"I... I don't know," he said, still looking at his hand in disbelief. "I guess after my Focus was completed, it just... turned white."

The girl touched over her own Brand in confusion. "But I completed _my_ Focus, and _my _Brand is still black..."

It was confusing. Wasn't her Brand supposed to stop after she finished her Focus, too? The only way l'Cie turn to crystal is if they complete their Focus, right? It didn't make sense. But then again... She didn't remember what she _did_ to complete her Focus, or what her Focus even _was_. But she knew she hadn't received _another_ Focus... She would have remembered _that_...

The man quietly sighed before setting his hand back down. "I'm sorry, Miss... I honestly don't know why."

The girl sighed, as well. Then she set her hand down, her eyes scanning the ground. It was so frustrating. Why couldn't she remember anything? If she could remember even just what her Focus was, she could-

"Hey!" the girl exclaimed. She was suddenly being whisked away to the side by the man, taking cover behind a large metal staircase. "What-"

"Berserker," the man said, nodding over to the large, red, metal creature passing by just where the both of them were. "Seen them before when I was on a mission with my other comrades. Very dangerous right now. We should be especially careful since we don't have anything to defend ourselves with."

The girl nodded. "I'm guessing there's probably more monsters like that thing, too, since I just saw one earlier."

"Probably." He turned to the girl. "We need to get some weapons. _Quick_. Or else this place might be the first _and_ last place we ever see."

"Right."

They both nodded, and then turned their attention back to the Berserker. The man turned to her and counted soundlessly, signaling when they would run. Three... Two...

_Go_, he mouthed, pointing towards an opposite pillar before dashing forward, arriving at his destination in mere seconds. The girl followed close behind, but just halfway there, she tripped, falling just as the monster was about to turn around.

The man's eyes widened when he saw this. "Miss!" he said as loud as he could, but due to the presence of the Berserker, it was just a barely audible whisper.

The girl realized her situation and got up as fast as she could, sprinting toward the pillar, managing to elude the sight of the monster by mere inches.

Once she was behind the pillar, she put her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath as quietly as she could. The man watched silently as the Berserker stopped for a moment, took one look around, and headed off, away from the two of them. Then, he turned to the girl, bending down to her hunched form.

"Are you alright, Miss?" he asked.

The girl looked over to him and smiled, straightening out her huddled form. "Yeah, I'm good. Thanks." She took a look around. "No monsters in sight. We should probably get going-"

But just as she was going to start walking, the man grabbed her arm. "Wait."

Her eyes instantly widened, her body instantly going back behind the pillar. "What? Did I miss a monster somewhere here?" she asked, looking feverishly around the room. "I thought I-"

"No, you didn't," he said, causing her form to relax.

"Then what-?"

The man suddenly stuck out his hand, as if for a handshake, and said, "Reid. My name, that is."

The girl just looked at him in total shocked. They could be killed by monsters anytime now! This was no time to be worried about something so trivial as names!

"What, you don't want me to keep calling you just 'Miss' now, do you?" he said, arching his eyebrows.

She had to admit: she _didn't_ want to be called just 'Miss' all day, either, but... She knew he was a l'Cie, and a seemingly good guy, but she just met him! She couldn't trust him just like this! What if he turned out to be... To be like one of those evil guys who- She didn't even want to think about those things.

But she knew one thing: this guy would have to earn much more of her trust before she could trust him with anything, even something as simple as her name.

"L... L..."

"Hmm?"

It was kind of messed up, she knew that. But she had to do it.

"...Lillian. Call me Lillian," she said, shaking his hand twice, not able to look at him straight in the eye.

Reid just smiled slightly, releasing her hand.

Oh, but why did it feel so wrong? Oh yeah, probably because _he_ wasn't lying to her, too. Probably because _he_ wasn't so unreasonably paranoid as she was.

"Well then, Lillian," Reid said. "We'd better head off now."

Well, she could always tell him later. When their lives _weren't _in danger. When they got out of this seemingly weird nightmare. But for now...

"Yeah. Let's go."


End file.
